Māori Party co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer have announced they are launching a petition to change New Zealand’s name to Aotearoa.
Furthermore, they would like te Reo Māori names for all towns, cities, and places by 2026.
Waititi said that “Article 3 of Te Tiriti o Waitangi promises Tangata whenua the same rights as British citizens, that te reo Māori me ōna tikanga katoa be treated and valued exactly the same as the English language – ko te mana ōrite tērā.”
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern would not commit to supporting the petition. However, she said place names could continue to be used interchangeably as te reo Māori is an official language.
Ardern said that “Te reo Māori’s an official language and so we use those names interchangeably and I think we should continue to do so.”
28 Responses
nice… well I live in Rotorua and if that does continue Rotorua would have to change its name back into maori cause its already maori!
Nooooooooooooo!! Please don’t change I love the name New Zealand
I personally don’t think we should change our name
I don’t think this is fair, it’s been New Zealand for so long why change it. I think everone is treated the same here and not that many people speak Maoir.
It’d be weird if New Zealand did become “Aotearoa”. It’d also take a while for people to change the name of New Zealand to Aotearoa on maps and websites, and it’d be awkward for older maps.
I think this is cool because there will be more maori in the world
I think they are just wasting money, I like the name of our country, but what do I know I am just a kid.
I think it would be weird to call New Zealand, Aotearoa because most people have always called it New Zealand so it would be weird if we change it now.
this is so sad
wow
Wow such a big choice for the people to make
wow but I wonder if we change nz to Aotearoa how will the other countries pronounce it
i think making everything maori is a bit excessive but having it like the pm says is my idea of what should happen
Bad
I think that It is fine the way it is, as there is already quite a few places with Maori names, I also think that if they changed it, Aotearoa New Zealand would be better.
The thing is, Countries aren’t declared countries, they’re just recognized as countries. Therefore New Zealand can be recognized as Aotearoa or New Zealand.
Hey! I understand thats what maori wants but i like newzealand this way a mix of maori and english!!! 😭
wow
Awesome! New Zealand has been called the same thing for far too long!
nah I dont think we should change names
Wow! Yay!!!
I dont think its very smart to do that
Keep it new zealand I live in aukland but I am from England
look it’s nice that they want to embrace the heritage but changing the names of places in NZ to maori and New Zealand. That’s just wrong l:(
I dont think its a good idea because I like the names just how they are.
I am Maori but I think it should be both names like in other countries they say New Zealand but here we say Aotearoa, but I do think it would be better to change the name of cities especially Hamilton
Thats just stupid. New Zealand is and always will be its name. I respect the maori culture but I just think its dumb
It will be super expensive for the government to change all the signs, and English is just as important as Maori. if the petitioners win, more petitions will come up to change it all back.